Background

Although there is growing excitement (or hype) around the use of blockchain and distributed ledger technologies (DTLs) for creating meaningful industry change, questions remain on whether and how they can create value. Currently, the field is characterized by an “if you build it they will come” logic; faith that by applying blockchain technologies to identity management and other needs, it will have positive impact. To yield a more actionable understanding of whether and how blockchain and other DLTs can propel such changes, we need to move from a faith-based to an evidence-based approach. By providing new ways to securely identify individuals and organizations, and record transactions of various types in a distributed manner, blockchain technologies have been heralded as a new tool to address information asymmetries, establish trust and improve governance – especially around the extraction of oil, gas and other natural resources.

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